A new identity
by crazedchick
Summary: Jayne Lloyd has suffered a lot of pain and heartache since she was a child. She is sent to Mount Horizon in the hope's of giving her a fresh start. Will Peter Sophie and the other Cliffhangers be able to help her, or will she continue to suffer alone. R/R


**A/N: Hey everybody. I recently become a fan of this show and for some reason now i'm posting a story up for it. The story is based on a true story and the person involved in the story is someone that I am very close to so please don't send any negative comments because I will just delete them and it will be a waste of time and effort from you. I've also changed the person's name in this story for privacy reasons. Feel free to leave a review on what you think about the story so far...I would really appreciate it.**

**A/N: For disclaimer purposes I do not own Higher Ground.**

**Profile:**

**Name: **Jayne Lloyd

**D.O.B.** 17th November 1990

**Age:** 18

**Ethnic Background:** (White) British

**Background:**Lives with mum and step-father in a three bed roomed house. Real father left when she was a baby and older sister lived with her father. Mum was involved with an abusive man although she was unaware of his true nature at the time. Jayne, her brother and mum were physically and verbally abused by this man for a couple of years. Details of the incidents that took place during this time are unknown as Jayne refuses to let anybody in. During this time Jayne lost somebody close to her and she finds it difficult to talk about how she feels about the loss of her Grandma. At nine years of age Jayne and family moved away from the man for a fresh start however around two years later Jayne's mum met up with her brother's father. Jayne and her brother were sexually abused by this man but once again Jayne refuses to talk about the incident due to trust issues. Soon after her mum met her current step father who became her mum's savior. Jayne's brother began to shoot verbal abuse at his family due to his past and he holds a particular resentment towards Jayne. At the age of fourteen Jayne lost her grandfather and by the time she was fifteen she lost a close friend of the family who was like a second mum to her. Once again Jayne refuses to let anyone know how she feels about both of the incidents. Brother continues to hurl abuse at his family on a regular basis which causes arguments between Jayne's mum and step father.

**Reasons for sending Jayne to Mount Horizon High School: **Mum and step father want Jayne to open up and talk about the past so that it doesn't hold her back any more. Also Jayne's attitude towards her family has deteriorated over the years and parents are worried about what will happen next. Being around others who have been through similar situations may also help Jayne to talk more freely about her past.

**Personality: **Kind, Generous, Always puts others first, Shy around new people...more information to be added at a later date by Jayne's councillor.

_Wow_the man thought as he closed the file and leaned back in his chair sighing. "What's wrong Peter?" a woman with blond shoulder length hair asked as she stepped into his office and noticed his expression.

"We've got a new student joining us today. I'm putting her in with the cliff hangers." he said as he looked towards the woman with concern in his eyes.

"How bad is it Peter?" she asked sadly as she ran a list of different scenarios through her mind.

"It's bad Sophie. Verbal, Physical and Sexual abuse. The loss of people she cares about. Serious trust issues. Her father left when she was a baby so she will probably have abandonment issues as well. She reminds me a bit of Shelby except that she didn't run away and doesn't have any problems with drugsand Shelby hasn't had to deal with physical abuse." he said running a hand through his hair as he watched Sophie's eyes widen in horror as the realization sunk in.

"Oh no. What time is she due to arrive?" Sophie asked as she reached over the desk and picked up the file.

Peter glanced at his watch sighing once more as he stood up and walked around his desk. "Now. You can read the file on the way to meet her." he said as he pulled her up before walking out of his office.

xxx

"Come on Jayne. Lighten up already. Your acting like the world is coming to an end." a woman said chuckling lightly as Jayne glared at her and crossed her arms looking around her new _'home'_.

"It might as well be Danielle." she grumbled under her breath before speaking up. "I'm in another country where I don't know anybody and i'm some kind of foreigner to these people you know. I should be at home with the people I care about." she snapped sighing deeply as she noticed a man and woman approach them rapidly. "Looks like my last moments of freedom are coming to an end." she sighed softly as she looked toward her friend with a saddened expression.

"Don't be so over dramatic Jayne." Danielle snapped at her friend before turning to greet the man and woman.

"Hi there. I'm Peter Scarborough, the head of Mount Horizon and this is my colleague Sophie." the man said holding out his hand to greet them.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Danielle Field and this is Jayne Lloyd." Danielle said as she shook both their hands before stepping back. "I brought Jayne here because her mum has a huge fear of flying in case your wondering." she added noticing the questioning looks on their face's.

"Thank you for telling us Danielle. How are you Jayne?" Sophie asked as she stepped forward to greet the girl.

"I'd be a whole lot better if I wasn't here that's for sure." she said as she glared at the older woman and stepped away from her.

"Jayne!" Danielle admonished as she looked towards her friend in disapproval.

"That's okay Danielle. All the kids are like that when they first get here. We're used to it by now." Peter said before looking towards Jayne with a smile on his face. "Jayne your going to be joining the Cliffhangers group and Sophie will be your councillor. Now why don't we go inside and talk for a little while before we get our nurse to do an examination on you and Sophie checks through your things and explains what the school rules are." he said as he glanced around and noticed that the students were starting to come outside.

"Actually I can't. You see i've brought my children and husband with me and I told them that I wouldn't be long." Danielle said sadly as she looked towards Jayne with sorrow.

"Just go already. You can report back to everyone and tell them that i'm here like a good girl." Jayne spat as she picked up her bags and walked towards Peter and Sophie.

"Jayne...it's not like that. They're just worried about you. We all are." Danielle called out hoping to ease her friends pain.

"I'm not having this discussion with you Danielle. Just go. Your family needs you more than I do." Jayne said unwilling to make eye contact with Sophie or Peter despite their efforts.

"Sophie why don't you take Jayne to my office. I'll join you in a moment." Peter said as he looked towards his collegue with concern.

"Sure. Come on Jayne." Sophie said moving to wrap an arm around the teen but instead stumbling slightly as Jayne moved backwards.

"I'm to old for shit like that." she said as Sophie looked looked towards her surprised and yet knowingly.

"We don't tolerate that sort of language here Jayne." Peter said as he shot her a disapproving look and walked towards Danielle. "I know this must be difficult for you but Jayne will be perfectly fine here. Don't feel guilty for trying to help your friend." Peter said softly as he noticed her guilty expression.

"Thanks. I wish I didn't have to go right now but my family need me..." Danielle trailed off and moved towards her car. She unlocked the drivers door and looked towards Peter sadly. "Don't give up on her Peter. No matter how much she says she doesn't need this...she does." she said before stepping inside her car and starting the ignition.

"I won't. Here at Mount Horizon, we never give up on each other." he said before turning around and walking towards his office.

xxx

"...This is a school Jayne and you have to attend all lessons." Sophie said as she watched the girl pace around the office in frustration.

"Look lady. I finished school two years ago and i've got childcare qualifications from going to college. I don't need to learn anything any more when officially I finished school at sixteen." Jayne snapped as she sent a heated glare towards the older woman.

"Your laws about school are different to those of America. In America you finish school when your twenty one and since your in America you have to follow our law Jayne." Peter said as he stepped into his office and sat down at his desk.

"This is the biggest piece of bull i've heard in a long time." she snapped as she looked towards him.

"Language Jayne!" Peter admonished. "Do you want to talk about why your here?" he suggested hoping that a change of subject might help to put the girl at ease although he wasn't really expecting her to just open up to him.

"No idea." she said feeling slightly uncomfortable under his questioning gaze.

Peter nodded his head slightly before looking towards Sophie with a small smile on his face. "Why don't you take Jayne to the nurse and search through her things whilst informing her of the school rules. Afterwards you can fetch her back here." he said.

"Okay then. This way Jayne." Sophie said as Jayne looked towards Peter with a questioning gaze before walking towards the door with Sophie close by her.

Peter watched the girls head down the corridor and sighed. _This was going to take time_ he thought sadly as he recalled how the girl clammed up in his office just moments before. _Just like two others I know_ he thought grimly as he looked towards her file once more.

xxx

After dropping Jayne off at Peter's office again Sophie had gone off to find the cliffhangers to inform them of the new member in their group. Peter had also informed her that he would be fetching Jayne down to the group session that would be taking place later on that day to introduce her to everyone and it made Sophie nervous. The cliffhangers didn't really like having new people added to their group and Jayne didn't seem to happy at the prospect of meeting her group. As Sophie stepped into the lounge she was thankful to see that all the cliffhangers were sitting together in the middle of the room. _Makes my job easier_she thought as she approached the group. "Hey you guys got a minute?" she said effectively stopping all conversations as everyone turned to look at her and a blond haired girl groaned.

"Why do I get the feeling your about to say something that we don't wanna hear?" the girl asked as the rest of the group murmured their agreement.

"Thank you for that Shelby. I'm here to let you know that we've got a new student who's going to be joining our group...Starting with our group session." Sophie said as she looked towards her group to try and gauge their reaction.

"What?"

"Oh you have got to be kidding me."

"Why our group Sophie?"

"Is she hot?"

"Guys enough. It's Peter's decision and we know that he does things for a reason. You'll find out if she's hot later Augie and Shelby I am not kidding you." Sophie said holding up her hands and gesturing for them to stop.

"Well at least I won't be the newbie any more." a girl called out.

"Way to state the obvious Daisy." Shelby said as she smirked at the girl and pushed her playfully, effectively ending the tense atmosphere as the group began talking amongst themselves once more.

xxx

"So are you ready to meet the rest of the cliffhangers then?" Peter asked Jayne as they walked across the grounds and towards the lounge.

"Don't really have much of a choice now." Jayne said refusing to look at Peter as they came to a stop outside of the double doors that led towards the lounge.

"Yes you do but the rest of the cliffhangers will be disappointed if you don't come to group tonight when Sophie told them that you would be there." Peter said as he looked towards Jayne sympathetically.

"I don't really care." she stated as Peter opened the door and allowed her to step past him giving her a full view of a group of kids sat together in a circle with Sophie and she sighed. At least they seem to be around my age she thought as all the group looked towards her. "It's rude to stare." she snapped as she walked toward them.

"Woah! She's British." Augie said leaning forward in his seat with excited eyes.

"Yep. And your a moron. Who cares?" she drawled out as she glared at him and watched him shrink back in his seat with satisfaction.

Shelby jumped up and walked around the group to greet her. "I think i'm gonna like you. Shelby Merrick." she said holding out her hand to greet her. Jayne looked towards her hand unsure for a moment before shrugging and reaching out to shake it.

"Girls you can save that for group now sit down. Oh and Jayne?" Peter said surprised at how easily she took to Shelby as both girls sat next to each other on the settee.

"What?"

"Since you seem to have forgotten the 'no name calling' rule I just thought i'd remind you." Peter said as he sat down next to Sophie. "Now since we have a new member I think that everybody should introduce themselves and tell everyone one thing about you. Shelby why don't you finish off since you were so eager to introduce yourself a few minutes ago." he added.

"Fine. I'm Shelby Merrick and I don't really like heights. Daisy."

"My name is Daisy and I am fascinated with death. Kat."

"Hey i'm Kat and I like to work with the elderly. Juliette."

"I'm Juliette and i'm dating Augie. Augie."

"Hey my name is Augie and i'm dating Jules. Scott."

"My name's Scott Barringer and I don't know what else to say right now. Ezra."

"Well as you know my name is Ezra and I like living here. Peter."

"Well done everybody. Now Jayne introduce yourself and tell us one thing about you." Peter said as he looked towards her with a hopeful expression.

"Jayne Lloyd and I used to live in England." she said in a bitter tone as she looked towards Sophie and Peter frowning.

The atmosphere remained tense for a moment as everyone held their breath but surprisingly it was Scott who broke the silence as he spoke up. "So...what's it like in England?"

Jayne turned towards him with a surprised look as did the other members of the group. "Dull...the weather is nothing like it is here and there's really not that much to do. And where I used to live all the kids were in gangs and terrorising everybody whenever they felt like it. What's it like in America?" she asked hoping that she sounded interested on the topic and that the group session would end soon.

"Well the weather here is perfect most of the time and it was really nice where I lived. My mom always made sure that I was well looked after and that I had something to do." Juliette squealed in excitement as she leaned forwards in her chair to look towards the new cliffhanger with excitement.

Jayne looked away from her for a moment before looking at her once more with a frown. "So basically your a rich snob who has nothing better to do but rub it in other people's faces." she said and Shelby chuckled beside her.

"Finally somebody who see's it from my point of view. Guess your not so perfect anymore princess." she drawled out as she smirked at the dark haired girl who looked hurt.

"Shut your mouth Shelby. And you to newbie." Augie snapped in anger which made Jayne smirk once more.

"Looks like the moron has got a crush on the snob. A match made in heaven. And could you come up with something better than newbie...I mean come on that's so boring." she said sarcastically causing Shelby and Daisy to laugh at her whilst Kat shot her a disapproving look and Scott tried not to laugh.

"That's enough you guys. Why don't you head off to bed. Jayne in the morning I want you to write an apology to Juliette and Augie for calling them names. Bring them to me so I can look them over and we can talk about your lack of respect for others. Shelby I want you to write an apology to Juliette as well and you can come along with Jayne to show me it." Peter said shooting both girls a disapproving glance as they moved to protest. Instead they nodded their heads and stood up to follow the rest of the group.

"That's totally out of order." Jayne mumbled as she walked beside Shelby who was smirking.

"I know but i'm used to it by now. I should open up an apology writing company because i've written so many." she said sarcastically as she glanced towards her friend and noticed a grin spreading across her face.

"I can't believe that I have to apologise for telling the truth though. I bet the snob and the moron are laughing their heads off at us right now." Jayne said as she glared at the two in question.

"Personally I think that you guys deserve this." Kat said as she suddenly appeared next to Jayne.

"Kat right?" Jayne said shooting the dark skinned girl a questioning glance.

"Yea." Kat replied confused about what was going on.

"You remind me of a younger version of me. Back in England I was a bit of a goody two shoes...it's not that I grassed on anybody or anything but I just tended to stay away from trouble and kept myself to myself. I was a teachers pet though I didn't always hand in my homework and my punctuality wasn't the best but for whatever reason the teachers liked me." Jayne paused for a moment to catch her breath and Kat jumped in.

"Is there any point to this?" she snapped losing her patience with the new cliffhanger because she felt insulted by her.

Jayne chuckled softly as she shot a quick glance towards Kat before looking ahead of her once more."I'm getting there Kat...anyway I wasn't exactly unpopular at school but I wasn't at the top of the popularity chain either. I was the link between both groups and it made me feel happy at times but there were other times when I felt like I was being walked all over. I knew some people at school and Juliette's aura reminds me of them. They had money and liked to brag about what they had bought and how much it cost to some of my friends who were unpopular and didn't have access to that type of money. I'm not saying that Juliette is like that but it's how she comes across to me and unlike in school I tell it how it is now. It stops me getting hurt." Jayne said walking in front of Shelby to enter her new dorm and looking around sadly before looking towards Kat. "You seem like a nice person and I like that." she added hoping that she could finally put the insecure girl at ease.

Kat stared at Jayne for a few moments looking slightly unsure about what to next before pursing her lips together and narrowing her eyes at her. "I'm going to check on Juliette." she said in a firm tone before walking towards the bathroom where small sniffling sounds could be heard.

"Your bed's next to mine Jayne." Shelby said with a smile as she finally got a moment alone with the new comer who reminded her so much of herself. _I wonder why she's here_ she thought as she watched Jayne move towards the bed and pulled out some shorts and a tank top for bed from her suitcase.

"Is there anywhere else that I can change? I don't fancy listening to the snob and Kat bitching about me on my first night here." Jayne inquired as she sat down across from Shelby.

"Sure. Come on." Shelby said jumping up and pulling Jayne towards the exit with a mischievious glint in her eyes.

"Where are we going Shelby?" Jayne asked as they stepped outside and ran towards another cabin opposite their own.

"Shhh! Or we'll get caught." Shelby whispered as she opened the door and pulled them both inside pushing it closed and leaning against it.

"Shelby! Jayne!" Ezra exclaimed pulling a top across his chest as he watched them walk through the room in a daze.

"Hey Ezra...nice body." Shelby said smirking at him as she pulled Jayne through the and watching him blush.

"Merrick, Jayne what the hell do you think your doing?" Scott nearly shouted and Jayne looked towards him.

"Quiet you idiot or do you want to be caught as well. Since my dorm's bathroom is in use by a cry baby and Kat at the moment Shelby kindly suggested that I use yours to change." she snapped irritated by how stupid he was acting and stepping inside the bathroom to change whilst Shelby waited outside.

"You can't just do that Shelby. She might not know any better but you do." Augie said crossing his arms and looking towards her with a reprimanding glance.

"Don't have a go at her. If I wanted to stay in my dorm I would have but I didn't so it's as much my fault as it is her's." Jayne said as she stepped out of the bathroom pulling her hair out of her tank top and glaring at him.

"Ain't that sweet two skanks defending one another." Scott called out as he smirked at the two girls from his bed.

Jayne started walking towards him in anger. "Did you just call me a skank?" she asked in an almost dis-believing tone.

"So what if I did? Everyone round here knows that Merrick is one and since you two are so similar in personalities it's kind of obvious that your one to." he replied smugly. Jayne narrowed her eyes at him and was about to jump on him when Shelby pulled her back by her arm.

"He's not worth it Jayne." Shelby said answering the questioning gaze that her friend was shooting her.

"That may be true. But haven't you ever heard of the phrase 'don't judge a book by it's cover'...or something like that any way. It's the same thing with people, so don't judge me when you don't know anything about me. And even if Shelby has been known to be a skank in the past-no offence." she said pausing for a moment to look at the blond apologetically.

"None taken." Shelby said with a small smirk. She had to admit that this was the best entertainment that she had seen for a while and so she had decided to let that comment slide.

Jayne nodded and switched her gaze back to Scott who was starting to squirm on his bed. "Does that mean that she's the same person now? Does it hell, so next time think before you open that trap of yours Barringer." she snapped before pulling her arm out of Shelby's grip and walking towards the exit of the boys dorm leaving the occupants stunned as the blond ran to catch up to her.

Once the boys were sure that the girls had left they turned to face each other and Augie whistled. "Now that is one fiesty girl. If I wasn't with Juliette then she would definetly be number one on my to date list."

Ezra laughed. "I didn't realise that you had a to date list but I get where your coming from. She's not my type though." he said before looking at Scott who had a dazed look on his face. "You okay there buddy?" he said pushing his friend playfully in his shoulder and snapping him out of his day dream.

"I'm fine. What's that girl's problem any way?" Scott wondered out loud. Augie shrugged his shoulders whilst Ezra went to reply but Scott rolled over on his bed leaving the two remaining cliffhangers to look at each other knowingly.

_Life at Mount Horizon had just taken an interesting turn_ the boys thought as they climbed into their own beds and turned out the light.

xxx

"Why'd you defend me in there?" Shelby asked her companion as they entered their dorm once more. It was easy to see that Jayne was still angry from the incident that had taken place moments before but Shelby was losing her patience and needed to know why a newbie cliffhanger would defend her even though the girl knew nothing about her. _She probably felt sorry for me _the blond thought bitterly as Jayne looked towards her with a stunned expression.

"Why wouldn't I. And don't get to full of yourself Barringer was offending me as well." Jayne said as she climbed in her bed and went to turn over.

"Yeah I know that but for future reference I can take care of myself." Shelby snapped irritated by how the girl was just brushing her off.

"That's nice to know. Now can you do me a favor and shutup...I think that the jetlag is finally catching up to me and since it's an early start for us I need my sleep." Jayne called over her shoulder which left Shelby stunned for the second time that night.

"I like that girl." Daisy said smirking at Shelby who looked around and glared at her. "Reminds me of you in some ways." she added casually before turning away from her friend and leaving her to her thoughts.

Shelby sighed as she layed down in her bed and thought about her new friend. Things were certainly getting interesting at mount horizon and Shelby couldn't wait to see what happened next.

**A/N: Well that's the first chapter out of the way. Longer than my usual chapters but I think that this is because this story was closer to home. Though I watched this show I don't know all of the original characters last names so anybody who can help me out with that then let me know...Thanks!**

**Again please leave a review.**


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